Meg of Mystery Mountain Part 6

Meanwhile Julie and Gerald had quietly opened the door of the drawing-room, and, finding Dan alone, they told him with great gusto about their new friend. "Mr. Packard says he's a really-truly neighbor of ours," Gerry said. "How can he be a neighbor if he lives fifteen miles away?"

"I don't know, Gerald, but I suppose that he does," Dan replied. "I would like to meet your new friend. I'll try to be up tomorrow."

CHAPTER X.

A CATTLE-MAN FRIEND

The next day Dan seemed to be much better as the crisp morning air that swept into their drawing-room was very invigorating. By noon he declared that he was quite strong enough to go to the diner for lunch, and, while there, the excited children pointed out to him their friend Mr. Packard.

That kindly man bowed and smiled, noting as he did so that the older girl in their party drew herself up haughtily. The observer, who was an interested student of character, did not find it hard, having seen Jane, to understand the lack of enthusiasm which the children had shown when speaking of her.

Not wishing to thrust his acquaintance upon the girl, who so evidently did not desire it, the man pa.s.sed their table on his way from the diner without pausing.

It is true that Julie had made a slight move as though to call to him, but this Mr. Packard had not seen, as a cold, rebuking glance from Jane's dark eyes had caused the small girl to sit back in her chair, inwardly rebellious.

Dan, noting this, said: "I like your friend's appearance. I think I shall go with you for a while to the observation platform. I cannot breathe too much of this wonderful air."

Jane reluctantly consented to accompany them there. "Gee-golly, how I hope Mr. Packard is there," Gerald whispered as he led the way.

The Westerner rose when the young people appeared and Jane quickly realized that he was not as uncouth as she had supposed all ranchers were.

Dan was made as comfortable as possible and he at once said: "Mr.

Packard, Gerald tells me that you are our neighbor. That is indeed good news."

"You have only one nearer neighbor," the man replied, "and that is the family of a trapper named Heger. They have a cabin high on your mountain."

Then, turning toward Jane, he said: "Their daughter, whom they call Meg, is just about your age, I judge. She is considered the most beautiful girl in the Redfords district. Indeed, for that matter, she is the most beautiful girl whom I have ever seen, and I have traveled a good deal.

How pleased Meg will be to have you all for near neighbors."

Jane's thoughts were indignant, and her lips curled scornfully, but as Mr. Packard's attention had been drawn to Gerald, he did not know that his remarks had been received almost wrathfully.

"Ranchers must have strange ideas of beauty!" she was a.s.suring herself.

"How this crude man could say that a trapper's daughter is the most beautiful girl he has ever met when he was looking directly at _me_, is simply incomprehensible. Mr. Packard is evidently a man without taste or knowledge of social distinctions."

Jane soon excused herself, and going to their drawing-room, she attempted to read, but her hurt vanity kept recurring to her and she most heartily wished she was back East, where her type of beauty was properly appreciated. It was not strange, perhaps, that Jane thought herself without a peer, for had she not been voted the most beautiful girl at Highacres Seminary, and many of the others had been the attractive daughters of New York's most exclusive families.

Dan returned to their drawing-room an hour later, apparently much stronger, and filled with a new enthusiasm. "It's going to be great, these three months in the West. I'm so glad that we have made the acquaintance of this most interesting neighbor. He is a well educated man, Jane." Then glancing at his sister anxiously, "You didn't like him, did you? I wish you had for my sake and the children's."

Jane shrugged her slender shoulders. "Oh, don't mind about me. I can endure him, I suppose."

Dan sighed and stretched out to rest until the dinner hour arrived.

Julie and Gerald joined them, jubilantly declaring that they were to reach their destination the next morning before sun-up.

"Then we must all retire early," Dan said. This plan was carried out, but for hours Jane sobbed softly into her pillow. It was almost more than she could bear. She had started this journey just on an impulse, and she _did_ want to help Dan, who had broken down trying to work his way through college that there might be money enough to keep her at Highacres. It was their father who had been inconsiderate of them. If he had let the poor people lose the money they had invested rather than give up all he had himself, she, Jane, could have remained at the fashionable seminary and Dan would have been well and strong.

Indeed everything would have been far better.

But the small voice in the girl's soul which now and then succeeded in making itself heard caused Jane to acknowledge: "Of course Dad is so conscientious, he would never have been happy if he believed that his money really belonged to the poor people who had trusted him."

It was midnight before Jane fell asleep, and it seemed almost no time at all before she heard a tapping on her door. She sat up and looked out of the window. Although the sky was lightening, the stars were still shining with a wonderful brilliancy in the bit of sky that she could see. Then a voice, which she recognized as that of Mr. Packard, spoke.

"Time to get up, young friends. We'll be at Redfords in half an hour."

Gerald leaped to his feet when he heard the summons. Then, when he grasped the fact that they were nearly at their destination, he gave a whoop of joy.

"Hurry up, Julie," he shook his still sleeping young sister. "We are 'most to Mystery Mountain, and, Oh, boy, what jolly fun we're going to have."

Half an hour later, Mr. Packard and the young Abbotts stood on a platform watching the departing train. Then they turned to gaze about them. It surely was a desolate scene. The low log depot was the only building in sight, and, closing in about them on every side were silent, dark, fir-clad mountains that looked bold and stern in the chill gray light of early dawn. Jane shuddered. How tragically far away from civilization, from the gay life she so enjoyed--all this seemed.

The station master, a native grown too old for more active duty, shuffled toward them, chewing tobacco in a manner that made his long gray beard move sideways. His near-sighted eyes peered through his bra.s.s-rimmed spectacles, but, when he recognized one of the new arrivals, he grinned broadly. In a high, cracked voice he exclaimed: "Wall, if 'tain't Silas Packard home again from the East. Glad to git back to G.o.d's country, ain't you now, Si? Brought a parcel of young folks along this trip? Wall, I don't wonder at it. Your big place is sort o' lonesome wi' no wimmin folks into it. What? You don' mean to tell me these here are Dan Abbott's kids! Wall, wall. How-de-do? Did I know yer pa? Did I know Danny Abbott?

I reckon I was the furst man in these here parts that did know him. He come to my camp, nigh to the top of Redfords' Peak, the week he landed here from college." The old man took off his bearskin cap and scratched his head. "Nigh onto twenty-five year, I make it. Yep, that's jest what 'twas. That's the year we struck the payin' streak over t'other side of the mountain, and folks flocked in here thicker'n buzzards arter a dead sheep. Yep, that's the year the Crazy Creek Camp sprung up, and that's how yer pa come to buy where he did."

Then, encouraged by the interest exhibited by at least three of the young people, the old man continued:

"The payin' streak, where the camp was built, headed straight that way, and I sez to him, sez I--'Dan Abbott,' sez I, 'If I was you I'd use the money I'd fetched to get aholt of that 160 acres afore it's nabbed by these rich folks that's tryin' to grab all the mines,' sez I. 'That's what I'd do.' And so Dan tuk it, but as luck would have it, that vein petered out to nothin' an' I allays felt mighty mean, havin' Dan stuck that way wi' so much land an' no gold on it, but he sez to me, 'Gabby,'

that's my name; 'Gabby,' sez he, 'don' go to feelin' bad about it, not one mite. That place is jest what I've allays wanted. When a fellow's tired out, there's nothin' so soothin',' sez he, 'as a retreat,' that's what he called it, 'a retreat in the mountains.' But he didn't need 160 acres to retreat on, so he let go all but ten. He'd built a log cabin on it that had some style, not jest a shack like the rest of us miners run up, then Dan went away for a spell--but by and by he come back." The old man's leathery face wrinkled into a broad smile. "An' he didn't come back alone! I reckon you young Abbotts know who 'twas he fetched back with him. It was the purtiest gal 'ceptin' one that I ever laid eyes on.

You're the splittin' image of the bride Danny brought." The small blue eyes that were almost hidden under s.h.a.ggy gray brows turned toward Jane.

"Yep, you look powerful like your ma."

But Jane had heard only one thing, which was that even this garrulous old man knew one other person whom he considered more beautiful. How she wanted to ask the question, but there was no time, for "Gabby" never hesitated except to change the location of his tobacco quid or to do some long distance expectorating.

Turning to Mr. Packard, he began again: "Meg Heger's took to comin' down to Redfords school ag'in. She's packin' a gun now. That ol' sneakin' Ute is still trailin' her. I can't figger out what he wants wi' her. The slinkin' coyote! She ain't got nothin' but beauty, and Indians ain't so powerful set on that. Thar sure sartin is a mystery somewhere."

The old man stopped talking to peer through near-sighted eyes at the canon road.

"I reckon here's the stage coach," he told them, "late, like it allays is. If 'tain't the ho'ses as falls asleep on the way, then it's Sourface his self. Si, do yo' mind the time when the stage was a-goin' down the Toboggan Grade----"

It was quite evident that Gabby was launched on another long yarn, but Mr. Packard laughingly interrupted, placing a kindly hand on the old man's shoulder.

"Tell us about that at another time, Gab," he said. "We're eager to get to the town and have some breakfast."

He picked up Jane's satchel and Dan's also, and led the way to the edge of the platform, where an old-fashioned stage was waiting. Four white horses stood with drooping heads and on the high seat another old man was huddled in a heap as though he felt the need of seizing a few moments'

rest before making the return trip to Redfords.

"They have just come up the steep Toboggan Grade," Mr. Packard said by way of explanation. "That's why the horses look tired."

Then in his cheerful way he shouted: "h.e.l.lo, there, Wallace. How goes it?"

The man on the seat sat up and looked down at the pa.s.sengers with an expression so surly on his leathery countenance that it was not hard for the young people to know why he had been given his nickname, but he said nothing, nor was there in his eyes a light of recognition. With a grunt, which might have been intended as a greeting, he motioned them to get into the lower part of the stage, which they did.

Then he jerked at the reins and the horses came to life and started back the way they had so recently come. Gabby had followed them to the edge of the platform, and as far as the Abbotts could make out, he was still telling them the story which Mr. Packard had interrupted.

"How cold it is!" Julie shivered as she spoke and cuddled close to Dan.

He smiled down at her and then said: